Bob Seidensticker blogs at Cross Examined: Clear Thinking About Christianity. The blog can be found on the “Atheist Channel” on Patheos – a site also known for hosting the blog of novelist Mike Bird, whose fantasy novels have been described as “more like LOTR than the Narnia Chronicles”.

In a recent post, Bob examines examples in the Bible where Yahweh gets defeated in battle by other gods. As Bob says, these narratives are often quickly explained away in Christian commentaries on the Old Testament, given that the Bible’s acceptance of the existence of other gods beside Yahweh is something that many Christian commentators are keen to suppress. Yet the idea that Yahweh is one god among other gods is regularly affirmed throughout the majority of the books of the Old Testament (and continues in early Christianity, although the other gods are demoted to demons). Have a read of Religious Diversity in Ancient Israel and Judah, edited by John Barton and Francesca Stavrakopoulou (2010) for a recent treatment of the many divinities who were worshiped in ancient Israel and Judah.